Not only are many companies, organizations, governments, businesses, and entities now realizing the value and benefits of going paperless but many of the leaders in positive change are requiring that their partners, customers, clients, and constituents use paperless systems and technologies. Such is the case in Arlington County which is now notifying business owners they can no longer file their business tax returns via mail. Arlington’s Commissioner of Revenue recently announced that the office is getting rid of the mail-in-hard copy option and will now require people to file their taxes through an online all-digital payment portal and that business customers will not receive Business License, Business Tangible or Custodial paper tax forms in 2023. A three-year process in the making the county is finally making the paperless tax transition final as we head into the new fiscal year.

Every year since 2019 the Arlington government has moved other tax types to the paperless initiative, such as the annual business license and tangible property taxes, by eliminating the printing and mailing of pre-printed returns to customers who were already repeat digital filers. To finalize the paperless process the office’s Business Division is mandating that clients review and update their Customer Assessment and Payment Portal (CAPP) accounts or sign up for the portal no later than December 31st, 2022. If you have been following along to our blog it is easy to see how going paperless can help businesses continue their services during events beyond their control and save money on printing, postage, and labor costs that can be budgeted in other ways but what are some of the lessons we learn from this specific instance? Here are just some of the key takeaways we can glean from this New Year tax filing resolution from Arlington County.

Arlington County Going Paperless Bussiness Tax Filing Mandate Lesson #1: Immediate Confirmation

One of the benefits of creating a paperless system is that you can provide immediate confirmation and feedback to clients. This allows potential problems to be identified long before they become significant issues.

Arlington County Going Paperless Bussiness Tax Filing Mandate Lesson #2: Deadlines

By creating paperless networks you can create deadlines such as 12 pm-midnight without the need for a physical human presence.

Arlington County Going Paperless Bussiness Tax Filing Mandate Lesson #3: Centralization

Using online paperless digital portals allows for centralized documentation where all key business items can be sourced from a single location on the web or in the cloud.

Arlington County Going Paperless Bussiness Tax Filing Mandate Lesson #4: No Lost Mail

By going paperless and interacting in digital formats you can avoid the potential to lose mail or make errors when sending documents through the post office. 

Arlington County Going Paperless Bussiness Tax Filing Mandate Lesson #5: Receipts of Correspondence

By utilizing digital documentation and going paperless you can always confirm what has been communicated making it easy to track all important correspondence.

Arlington County Going Paperless Bussiness Tax Filing Mandate Lesson #6: Safety

By eliminating in-person contact points and physical transactions you can insure levels of safety unavailable to methodologies that are not using such going paperless tactics and measures.

Arlington County Going Paperless Bussiness Tax Filing Mandate Lesson #7: Waste Reduction

By eliminating clutter and paper to be stored, shredded, or discarded you can not only help protect the environment but keep waste to a minimum around the home or office.

This Arlington County paperless initiative hopes to reduce recurring issues with processing business tax returns on time, such as invalid addresses, multiple submissions, messy handwriting, incomplete forms, missing or illegible postmarks, and third-party versions with inaccurate information all of which can teach us valuable lessons on how to improve our own internal personal and professional projects and processes. Will you be making any switches to paperless systems in 2023?